Runaway Bride, chapter 2
If someone were to have asked me right then what made me say yes when Tre asked if I would run away with him, I couldn't have told them. It was as if something snapped in my brain, something that told me I was meant to do this, that the rest of my life had been nothing in comparison to this moment. I didn't spare one thought to what it would mean for the rest of my life, my future, my husband, my parents, my job, all the things that used to make me who I was.
Without letting go of my hand, Tre started walking quickly in the direction opposite of the way I had come. I had no choice but to follow him. It took me a second to realize that at the end of the hall there was an exit door that led to the parking lot. He pushed open the door with a questioning glance at me, as if asking, Do you really want to do this? But he didn't give me a chance to reply.
He led me to a beat up old van in the middle of the parking lot.
"Get in." he said quickly. Now, I wouldn't exactly call myself spoiled, but I did have second thoughts about getting in that car. The paint was peeling off the doors, one of the taillights looked as though it had been kicked in, and there were dents and scratches all over it. It was even worse when I opened the door. There were clothes and food wrappers all over the floor and a stench that distinctly smelled of boy. But I sucked up all my apprehension and delicately climbed in.
Tre started the car and sped off without a look back. As I looked at us, I couldn't help feeling more rebellious than I ever had in my entire life. I had grown up in a small town in Colorado, the same one that we were leaving now, and I had never once slightly bent the rules, much less broken them. And now I was running away from my wedding and my life. I noted the dirt on the bottom of my wedding dress from the grass outside, and felt that my hair was mussed and lipstick was smudged from kissing Tre. Tre's jaw was set, and there was a determined look in his eyes as he manuevered the van around the road, taking us further and further from home.
"Your name's Cassandra, right?" Tre asked me. Oh my God, I couldn't help thinking. I was in a car with a guy, going to who knows where, my trust completely in that he knew what we were doing, and he wasn't even sure he knew my name.
But I didn't say anything like that. All I said was, "Yeah." He nodded. I wasn't really sure I wanted to start a conversation right now, but Tre seemed fixed on it.
"Running away from your wedding, huh? Pretty big deal."
"Yeah, well." I sighed and looked out the window.
"Well, what?"
I began to get defensive. Was he saying I had made the wrong decision? "You asked me to!"
He smiled. "I couldn't help it. You just looked so damn beautiful standing there, I knew I needed to have you forever."
My heart melted. No one had ever said anything so sweet to me before. I wasn't sure how to respond to that, so I didn't. There was a silence, then he started talking again.
"How old are you?" he asked.
"Eighteen." I replied. "You?"
"Same." He paused. He seemed to be considering something. "Why the hell would you get married at eighteen?"
I sighed. "Well, when you put it like that, I guess I can't really think of a good reason."
"Oh no, you're not getting out of it that easily. Why?"
I looked at him in confusion. Why did he care so much? I tried to think. "I don't know, Caleb just asked me, and it seemed like the right thing to do, so I said yes." I thought some more. "You know, I don't regret it for a second."
"Why not?"
I blushed. "Because. If I hadn't gotten married, then I never would have met you."
His answer was completely unexpected. "How do you know that?"
"Know what?"
"That you never would have met me."
"I...I don't know. I guess there's no way of knowing."
"Yeah." He was quiet again, staring out the windshield, his brow creased in thought.
I waited for him to say something else, but he didn't. I watched the trees and houses and cows and electric poles pass by for a while. I wondered how I could be so comfortable with Tre, when I had only just met him. I wondered if I loved him, and if there was even any way of knowing this soon. I thought about whether Tre realized he had just thrown his whole life away, just like I had, just to spend it with me. This thought sent me reeling for a minute. He had done all this. For me. I tried not to think about this, I tried not to think about what we were supposed to do now, I tried not to think about what was happening back at the wedding, I tried not to think about how all my parents had ever wanted for me was a good life, and I had just thrown that away, that it was now a distant memory.
I spent most of the first hour thinking and not thinking about these things. I started shifting in my seat. Oh my God, this was not happening. Not now. I started praying to the god of bladders to make it stop, but they didn't listen.
"Uh...Tre?" I could feel the blush creeping up my neck.
"Yeah?" he replied distractedly.
"Uh...I have to pee."
"Oh! Um...okay...I'll just pull over."
"Pull over...WHERE?"
"In the dirt...oh. You're a girl."
I started laughing. "Brilliant deduction, genius."
"O....k. In that case, let's find a gas station, shall we?" He finally pulled off the freeway and into a gas station. At this point, I was practically fainting. I ran to the bathroom and slammed the door. After I was done peeing my brains out, I observed myself in the mirror. My makeup was long gone, except some stray mascara, which was smeared under my eyes. My fancy hair, which had taken almost two hours to do, was completely undone, with stray hairs everywhere. To top it all off, I noticed a new zit on my chin. In short, I looked awful. I tried not to scream as I raked my fingers through my hair and did my best to wash my face.
I returned to Tre, who was sitting in the car, slightly annoyed. "Why didn't you tell me I looked horrible?"
He looked genuinely confused. "What are you talking about? You look beautiful."
I suppressed a smile. "Really?"
"Of course." Apparently trying not to look like a huge softie, he changed the subject. "If it makes you feel any better..." he produced some shiny candy bars. "I got candy!!!" He grinned, tore open one of the wrappers, and popped a piece of chocolate in his mouth. "Want some?" he mumbled, his mouth full.
I had been on a diet for the last month, preparing for my wedding. I was more than happy to devour some as Tre restarted the car and pulled back onto the road.
I stared out the window and thought some more as Tre drove, noticing the sun was beginning to set. It wasn't long before I felt a pang in my stomach. I heard a growl deep in my intestines.
"Ow." I muttered.
"What?" Tre asked.
"Nothing." I said quickly. I moved, trying to make myself more comfortable, and clutched at my stomach. The pain was becoming unbearable. I couldn't believe what was happening.
"Tre." I groaned. "I...oh...I think I'm going to be sick."
"WHAT?!!" Tre's eyes opened wide. "Oh fuck...okay. Uh...uh..." he was obviously at a loss for what to do.
My hands were in front of my mouth. "Hurry..." I moaned. Tre pulled over to the side of the road, but I didn't wait for the car to stop moving before I opened the door and vomited into the dirt. I moaned.
I couldn't see what Tre was doing, but I could hear him mumbling. "Oh my God..."
I didn't want to look at him, fearing what I looked like, so I kept my face turned outside. "You have some napkins or something?"
"Um...." he handed me some. I did my best to wipe off my face and dress before I turned to look at Tre.
"I. Am. Sooooo. Sorry." I was horrendously embarassed.
He smiled. "It's okay. You look kind of cute when you barf."
I couldn't help but laugh. "Shut up."
Tre looked outside. "Hey, it looks like we're in front of a motel. You wanna stay here tonight?"
Without letting go of my hand, Tre started walking quickly in the direction opposite of the way I had come. I had no choice but to follow him. It took me a second to realize that at the end of the hall there was an exit door that led to the parking lot. He pushed open the door with a questioning glance at me, as if asking, Do you really want to do this? But he didn't give me a chance to reply.
He led me to a beat up old van in the middle of the parking lot.
"Get in." he said quickly. Now, I wouldn't exactly call myself spoiled, but I did have second thoughts about getting in that car. The paint was peeling off the doors, one of the taillights looked as though it had been kicked in, and there were dents and scratches all over it. It was even worse when I opened the door. There were clothes and food wrappers all over the floor and a stench that distinctly smelled of boy. But I sucked up all my apprehension and delicately climbed in.
Tre started the car and sped off without a look back. As I looked at us, I couldn't help feeling more rebellious than I ever had in my entire life. I had grown up in a small town in Colorado, the same one that we were leaving now, and I had never once slightly bent the rules, much less broken them. And now I was running away from my wedding and my life. I noted the dirt on the bottom of my wedding dress from the grass outside, and felt that my hair was mussed and lipstick was smudged from kissing Tre. Tre's jaw was set, and there was a determined look in his eyes as he manuevered the van around the road, taking us further and further from home.
"Your name's Cassandra, right?" Tre asked me. Oh my God, I couldn't help thinking. I was in a car with a guy, going to who knows where, my trust completely in that he knew what we were doing, and he wasn't even sure he knew my name.
But I didn't say anything like that. All I said was, "Yeah." He nodded. I wasn't really sure I wanted to start a conversation right now, but Tre seemed fixed on it.
"Running away from your wedding, huh? Pretty big deal."
"Yeah, well." I sighed and looked out the window.
"Well, what?"
I began to get defensive. Was he saying I had made the wrong decision? "You asked me to!"
He smiled. "I couldn't help it. You just looked so damn beautiful standing there, I knew I needed to have you forever."
My heart melted. No one had ever said anything so sweet to me before. I wasn't sure how to respond to that, so I didn't. There was a silence, then he started talking again.
"How old are you?" he asked.
"Eighteen." I replied. "You?"
"Same." He paused. He seemed to be considering something. "Why the hell would you get married at eighteen?"
I sighed. "Well, when you put it like that, I guess I can't really think of a good reason."
"Oh no, you're not getting out of it that easily. Why?"
I looked at him in confusion. Why did he care so much? I tried to think. "I don't know, Caleb just asked me, and it seemed like the right thing to do, so I said yes." I thought some more. "You know, I don't regret it for a second."
"Why not?"
I blushed. "Because. If I hadn't gotten married, then I never would have met you."
His answer was completely unexpected. "How do you know that?"
"Know what?"
"That you never would have met me."
"I...I don't know. I guess there's no way of knowing."
"Yeah." He was quiet again, staring out the windshield, his brow creased in thought.
I waited for him to say something else, but he didn't. I watched the trees and houses and cows and electric poles pass by for a while. I wondered how I could be so comfortable with Tre, when I had only just met him. I wondered if I loved him, and if there was even any way of knowing this soon. I thought about whether Tre realized he had just thrown his whole life away, just like I had, just to spend it with me. This thought sent me reeling for a minute. He had done all this. For me. I tried not to think about this, I tried not to think about what we were supposed to do now, I tried not to think about what was happening back at the wedding, I tried not to think about how all my parents had ever wanted for me was a good life, and I had just thrown that away, that it was now a distant memory.
I spent most of the first hour thinking and not thinking about these things. I started shifting in my seat. Oh my God, this was not happening. Not now. I started praying to the god of bladders to make it stop, but they didn't listen.
"Uh...Tre?" I could feel the blush creeping up my neck.
"Yeah?" he replied distractedly.
"Uh...I have to pee."
"Oh! Um...okay...I'll just pull over."
"Pull over...WHERE?"
"In the dirt...oh. You're a girl."
I started laughing. "Brilliant deduction, genius."
"O....k. In that case, let's find a gas station, shall we?" He finally pulled off the freeway and into a gas station. At this point, I was practically fainting. I ran to the bathroom and slammed the door. After I was done peeing my brains out, I observed myself in the mirror. My makeup was long gone, except some stray mascara, which was smeared under my eyes. My fancy hair, which had taken almost two hours to do, was completely undone, with stray hairs everywhere. To top it all off, I noticed a new zit on my chin. In short, I looked awful. I tried not to scream as I raked my fingers through my hair and did my best to wash my face.
I returned to Tre, who was sitting in the car, slightly annoyed. "Why didn't you tell me I looked horrible?"
He looked genuinely confused. "What are you talking about? You look beautiful."
I suppressed a smile. "Really?"
"Of course." Apparently trying not to look like a huge softie, he changed the subject. "If it makes you feel any better..." he produced some shiny candy bars. "I got candy!!!" He grinned, tore open one of the wrappers, and popped a piece of chocolate in his mouth. "Want some?" he mumbled, his mouth full.
I had been on a diet for the last month, preparing for my wedding. I was more than happy to devour some as Tre restarted the car and pulled back onto the road.
I stared out the window and thought some more as Tre drove, noticing the sun was beginning to set. It wasn't long before I felt a pang in my stomach. I heard a growl deep in my intestines.
"Ow." I muttered.
"What?" Tre asked.
"Nothing." I said quickly. I moved, trying to make myself more comfortable, and clutched at my stomach. The pain was becoming unbearable. I couldn't believe what was happening.
"Tre." I groaned. "I...oh...I think I'm going to be sick."
"WHAT?!!" Tre's eyes opened wide. "Oh fuck...okay. Uh...uh..." he was obviously at a loss for what to do.
My hands were in front of my mouth. "Hurry..." I moaned. Tre pulled over to the side of the road, but I didn't wait for the car to stop moving before I opened the door and vomited into the dirt. I moaned.
I couldn't see what Tre was doing, but I could hear him mumbling. "Oh my God..."
I didn't want to look at him, fearing what I looked like, so I kept my face turned outside. "You have some napkins or something?"
"Um...." he handed me some. I did my best to wipe off my face and dress before I turned to look at Tre.
"I. Am. Sooooo. Sorry." I was horrendously embarassed.
He smiled. "It's okay. You look kind of cute when you barf."
I couldn't help but laugh. "Shut up."
Tre looked outside. "Hey, it looks like we're in front of a motel. You wanna stay here tonight?"
